spacecraft

noun

space·​craft ˈspās-ˌkraft How to pronounce spacecraft (audio)
: a vehicle or device designed for travel or operation outside the earth's atmosphere

Examples of spacecraft in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
SpaceX’s next-generation Starship spacecraft atop its powerful Super Heavy rocket is launched on its sixth test at the company’s Boca Chica launch pad in Brownsville, Texas, on Nov. 19, 2024. Michael Sheetz, CNBC, 11 Dec. 2024 Of the 10 science instruments Voyager 1 started its journey with, four are currently gathering data on its cosmic environment, and each year, the spacecraft loses more of its precious power supply. Ashley Strickland, CNN, 7 Dec. 2024 Like a rock skipping across a pond, the spacecraft dips in and out of Earth’s atmosphere, slowing itself with drag and then rising with lift, until finally descending with parachutes for the splashdown. Olatunji Osho-Williams, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 Dec. 2024 The heat shield, which is designed to protect the spacecraft from intense temperatures during its fiery reentry into Earth's atmosphere, experienced more erosion than initially expected. Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for spacecraft 

Word History

First Known Use

1929, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of spacecraft was in 1929

Dictionary Entries Near spacecraft

Cite this Entry

“Spacecraft.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spacecraft. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

spacecraft

noun
space·​craft ˈspā-ˌskraft How to pronounce spacecraft (audio)
plural spacecraft
: a vehicle for travel beyond the earth's atmosphere

More from Merriam-Webster on spacecraft

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!